It wasn't really cold-blooded.

It's just that when you've seen certain things many times, they don't surprise you anymore.

"Did the patient transfer to another hospital or..." Wu Liguo asked.

Everyone else looked at Zhou Qihua.

Zhou Qihua shook his head and said, "No transfer. The main issue was the patient's critical condition. After four to five days of full rescue efforts, the patient was still in critical condition. After a consultation with specialists, it was unanimously agreed that there was a constant life-threatening risk. We suggested the patient's family prepare for the worst. Given the situation at the time, the patient might only have had two or three days left."

"Did you do a follow-up?"

Zhou Qihua instinctively glanced at the doctor who spoke and responded irritably, "How do you ask? Am I supposed to call and ask if they've passed away?"

The doctor who spoke gave an awkward smile.

"But it has been eight or nine days now, and without a miracle, I'm afraid the person has probably passed away," Zhou Qihua sighed.

"Old Zhou, alright, don't be too upset. None of us want to see such things happen. Who doesn't wish for their patients to be lively and healthy?"

Wu Liguo interrupted Zhou Qihua's lamentation, "First, tell us what exactly happened. You rescued the patient for four or five days, yet still advised them to prepare for the worst."

As a sub-provincial city, Yong City certainly doesn't lack medical resources. City First Hospital, being the core of Yong City's medical system, has recruited most top talents; a star team indeed wouldn't be an exaggeration.

However, even with such a medical team, they were still at a loss and didn't even recommend transferring the patient to another hospital. They directly advised them to prepare for the worst.

Such situations are rare in hospitals.

A misstep could easily lead to a lawsuit.

Frankly speaking, even when feeling helpless, there is usually a suggestion to try transferring to another hospital, like those in the province or Beijing, for some hope.

Even if that hope is slim, it shouldn't result in advising the patient to prepare for the worst.

All eyes, including Wu Liguo's, were filled with curiosity at that moment.

Zhou Qihua took a deep breath, and after regaining composure, continued, "It's quite complicated, I should say."

"The patient, due to occupational reasons, was infected with Brucella for over a year. Because of neglect, it progressed untreated, resulting in substantial damage to the heart, liver, and kidneys.

It was about half a month ago when the patient suddenly experienced heart failure and was admitted to our hospital in an emergency. At that time, the diagnosis was cardiomegaly, ventricular premature beats, cardiac function IV, and heart failure III. Meanwhile, there was pleural effusion, large arterial lesions, liver function damage, hypoproteinemia, and prolapsed necrotic tissue."

Hearing this, the few of them exchanged glances.

Brucella is a gram-negative, non-motile bacterium without a capsule (smooth type with micro capsules), catalase, and oxidase positive, an obligate aerobic bacterium that can reduce nitrate and parasitize intracellularly, surviving in many kinds of livestock.

Most critically, it is a zoonotic chronic infectious disease with significant harm.

"Shepherd?" Xiao Boheng subconsciously asked.

Zhou Qihua nodded.

"No wonder."

The realization dawned on all of them. The main sources of Brucella infection are cattle, sheep, and pigs, with the sheep form being the most transmissible to humans, the most pathogenic, and the most harmful.

Once Brucella enters the human body through skin wounds or mucous membranes, as long as immune function is normal, any unidentified foreign organism invading the body will be attacked by the immune system.

If the phagocytes fail to destroy all the bacteria, the "remnants" of Brucella would float along with the lymph to the lymph nodes to be engulfed by stationed phagocytes.

However, Brucella is an intracellular parasite capable of adapting to intracellular environments. Without antibodies specifically targeting it, it can remain inside cells more easily than non-intracellular parasitic bacteria and be protected from being attacked by specific antibodies and other bactericidal substances in the body's fluids.

Thus, the phagocytic action instead ends up protecting Brucella. At this point, the lymph node becomes a local primary focus, where some robust bacteria start metabolism and proliferation inside phagocytes, gradually destroying them from within.

The phagocytized Brucella congregate in the liver, spleen, and bone marrow, becoming multiple foci.

As the Brucella population grows increasingly larger, overwhelming the phagocytes, they begin to metabolize and proliferate in the extracellular blood, causing sepsis and prolonged intermittent fever, which is where "undulating fever" and "typhoid fever" get their names.

Xiao Boheng, clearly knowledgeable about Brucella, thought for a moment and asked, "Normally, Brucella doesn't cause a sudden severe illness. Did the patient contract another illness before this, weakening their resistance?"

Zhou Qihua nodded again, "Yes, according to the patient's own account, they caught the flu before the outbreak, which led to a full-blown Brucella infection in their body."

"What do you mean?" Some of the people didn't quite understand and were unfamiliar with Brucella, feeling a bit confused.

Xiao Boheng explained, "The cell walls of Brucella carry harmful lipid endotoxins, and when these bacteria are destroyed, the endotoxins are released with the bacterial remnants into body fluids, like a deadly explosion after death, causing a final poisonous blow to the body.

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